Tivo Rant

I am not in a good mood. My Tivo woes have begun again! I think it is officially dead... again. You may remember the heartbreak over my original Tivo that died last April, and the drama involved with getting a "new" replacement. Well... the refurbished piece of junk that never really worked quite right won't start up now. :( This time there was surprisingly not a lot of things lost, which I guess is good. And the new season of shows hasn't started yet, so there is time to figure this out before then. But that's not my point!!

I understand that hard drives fail. I really, truly, (unfortunately) do understand that. It's a fact of life in the 21st century. So when my original box died after a year and a half, I was sad but not shocked... these things happen. But when the replacement lasts only a few months... actually, 100 days (note the irony that it was not within 90 days)... I think I have a right to be upset. ARGH!!

So what do I do now? I have been considering a HD version since February, and was already thinking about maybe getting one anyway since the current box was so unreliable and I really want to check out HD tv on my amazing tv set! But that's a lot of money to spend... buy the Tivo box, buy the service, upgrade the cable, plus get cable cards for the box and probably a box for the other tv... it is definitely not a decision to be taken lightly. Plus, I would have to forfeit the pre-paid service on my old box, as well as junk the 100 day old box I spend a bit of money on. I have some money set aside from involuntary overtime at work, so its a possibility, but man... I hate being forced into a decision! It was one thing to think about splurging and upgrading to something new and fun, but quite another to now have kind of a timetable for that decision.

I know, I am being selfish and rather spoiled... here I am complaining about amazing technology and talking about spending a couple hundred bucks on HD when there are people who are starving or dying of horrible diseases or have ACTUAL suffering in their lives. I just needed to rant for a few minutes while I try to figure it out. I guess I don't HAVE to have a dvr, or even watch TV. It's just that with my work schedule the way it is (particularly when I go back to night shift in September), it is pretty darn hard to watch any TV at the time it actually airs. And I love my TV shows. :( Yes, it's pathetic, but hey, I'm just being honest. :)